Kapitel 60: Crisis in the Granary
After the villagers dispersed, Craig gathered everyone for a meeting. "We don't know when the reinforcements from the base will arrive. We can't afford to drag this on any longer."They had thoroughly angered the villagers, and staying here would only put them in a passive position.
"Craig, only a few villagers in the granary have guns. Those with guns are usually on watch. If we can deal with them, we can storm in," Hurley suggested.
"Does anyone else have a different opinion?" Craig asked.
The rest of the grain transport team looked at each other, but no one spoke. After a while, Cecilia said, "I think we can give it a try, but taking out the watchtower requires someone with exceptional skills."
Otherwise, startling the snake in the grass might make the villagers lose their rationality. They might attack recklessly, causing more harm than good.
Craig nodded, "Hurley and Alice sneaked in last night. If you two volunteer, we need three more. Anyone interested?"
"I'll go," a man stepped forward.
Craig noted his name and then surveyed the remaining people.
Under Craig's intense gaze, finally, two more people volunteered, "Count us in."
Craig took out the simple map drawn by Hurley and formulated a plan for tonight's ambush.
After dealing with the watchtower, the rest of them would climb over the wall. As long as the villagers surrendered, they wouldn't harm the innocent.
Once they finished discussing the plan, Cecilia expressed her doubt, "I feel like the expressions of those villagers didn't seem fake. It's not easy for one person to act, let alone coordinate a whole group. Someone would surely reveal their true feelings. They might be genuinely angry."
"It could be a group of good actors, or they rehearsed in private," Craig speculated.
"They claim all the rice in the granary disappeared. Why don't they say their family graves disappeared?" Cecilia questioned.
"If they had come up with a reasonable excuse, I wouldn't be so angry. They're showing a lack of respect for us," Craig concluded.Cecilia, noticing that they didn't take this seriously, smiled and didn't say anything more.
Alice casually glanced in her direction, coincidentally meeting Cecilia's gaze. In the next moment, Alice shifted her eyes away.
Alice didn't think much of it. When Craig finished speaking, she walked back to her car. Even if Craig didn't assign her, she would take on this task. After dealing with the watchtower, when the base's people attacked, she would retrieve the food.
Fortunately, the rest of the grain transport team didn't believe the villagers' claim that the food disappeared out of thin air. They considered it a made-up excuse by the villagers to confront them.
Handling food was troublesome, but it ignited the fighting spirit of the entire grain transport team. Originally, they planned to wait for reinforcements from the base before taking action, avoiding a direct confrontation. Now, the strategy had changed from defense to offense.The villagers had never intended to let them go, and they preferred to strike first.
At noon, just as Alice was about to ask Hurley what he wanted to eat, she saw a vehicle rushing in from a distance. Shortly after, the car stopped on the basketball court, and Marquis stumbled out of the car alone. His hair was disheveled, clothes dirty, and he shivered from the cold, looking miserable.
Everyone crowded around, astonished, asking, "How did you end up like this?"
Craig was equally shocked, as they had sent them off in good condition.
Shivering, Marquis said, "Octavio and I were ambushed by those villagers on the way. We were outnumbered, and Octavio was shot and killed while covering me. I had to escape, and later the car broke down. I spent a long time fixing ."
Fortunately, it happened at night. If it were during the day and the car broke down, he probably wouldn't have survived.
Craig was furious but comforted Marquis with a few words before instructing someone to get him some hot water. "Have a drink and rest for a bit."Marquis was scared out of his wits, his nerves stretched tight.
"These villagers are too much; we have to teach them a lesson," Craig said with a cold snort. They couldn't go back to the base for reinforcements at the moment, so they had to rely on themselves.
The anger of the group reached its peak. "Initially, considering they were villagers, we tried not to harm anyone if possible. Now, there's no need to be polite with them."The most important thing is that we've shown mercy, but they won't see it that way. They might be secretly mocking us for being timid, afraid even to fight."
Alice and Hurley didn't join in the cursing; instead, they walked to the side. "It's time to make lunch," Alice said.
"Let's have cola chicken wings today," Hurley took out a bag of thawed chicken wings.
Alice looked at his trunk with curiosity. How much stuff did he have hidden in there? It seemed like he had everything!
The two started cooking. Hurley even took out a pack of cod intestines from his temperature-controlled box and handed it to Alice. "Eat this while watching shows."
Alice accepted it without hesitation. "Thanks."
"I still have oranges, wax apples, and blueberries. Do you want them?" Hurley asked.
Alice: "?"
"Don't misunderstand, I just find joy in feeding others," Hurley smirked.
Alice rolled her eyes; this sounded like he was calling her a dog. Nevertheless, she politely declined.
Cecilia, who overheard the conversation, approached with envy in her eyes.
"Someone offering food is not a bad thing, you know?" Alice noticed her and asked, "What's up?"Cecilia hesitated before pulling out a gold bracelet from her pocket. "Can I borrow some rice from you? I've run out of food. Can I use this bracelet as collateral?"
Alice examined the bracelet; it seemed decent. After a moment's thought, she agreed, "I can lend you one pound of rice. That's all I have."
"One pound is enough; I can't eat much anyway." Cecilia's eyes sparkled with joy as she looked at Alice.
Alice: "Was it necessary to look at her with the eyes of a savior? She took Cecilia's bracelet and retrieved one pound of rice from her car.
Cecilia took the rice and left without sparing another glance at the meat they had brought out. Her cautious demeanor suggested she was afraid of giving the wrong impression by looking too long.
Alice ignored her and started preparing lunch. While cooking, she said, "Tonight, I'll have dry rations; no need to cook."
More accurately, she planned to have fast food tonight. She had not touched the fast food in her storage because she had been eating with Hurley these days.
Hurley nodded, "Okay, I still have instant noodles. We can handle that tonight."
Meanwhile, carried the frozen body of their leader back to the granary. People of all ages gathered around, their faces filled with shock.
"You have guns; why didn't you shoot them?" a woman asked anxiously.
"If we all started shooting, there would be more than one body coming back," one of the villagers explained. Their guns were homemade, and ammunition was scarce. Unless absolutely necessary, they couldn't use them easily.
"So, what should we do now? Leave this place?""Since the food is gone, what's the point of staying here?" one villager suggested.
"We've endured enough; we can't let the village head die in vain. This grudge must be avenged," another person declared.
Others looked at him with confusion, "Do you have a plan?"
He teased them, "Ever heard of the Hongmen Banquet?"
Some nodded, while others shook their heads.
Just as he was about to reveal the plan, he hesitated, concerned that the walls might have ears, and said, "Let's have a meeting first. You guys take care of the village head's body."
With that, all the men walked towards the meeting room.
Wöchentlicher Energiestatus
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Rangliste 
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Stein